Jashin Baby- A Hidan Love Story--- ON TEMPORARY HIATUS
by VampireNinja96
Summary: Hidan lay in pieces in the soil Shikamaru buried him under. Little did he know that Mia, a young girl with no home, would dig him up and sew him back together, all with a smile. Hidan is back, he is alive, and he's returning to the world with a girl. But with this one, he's going to get a whole lot more than he bargained for. Will she be able to reawaken his heart in the process?
1. Chapter 1- The Day She Found Him

**Hello! I hope you enjoy this fic. If you don't like naughty language, then run far away and do not return. For we all know that Hidan tends to... run his mouth a bit. Especially in this chapter. Anywa, enjoy this love story about our favourite murdering maniac, Hidan. ;) Review if you liked it!**

**PS- The lyrics at the beginning are from a song called 'Prayer' by the band Disturbed. It suits Hidan perfectly!**

**Chapter 1- The day she found him**

_Let me enlighten you!  
This is the way I pray  
Living just isn't hard enough  
Burn me alive inside  
Living my life's not hard enough  
Take everything away…_

He was very, very annoyed now. The soil was dense and laced through with his blood.  
Hidan couldn't even feel the pain anymore. How could he, when his body had been blasted apart by hundreds of explosive tags? He didn't die, thanks to the ritual that blessed him with immortality, but he might remain underground like this for eternity. He couldn't resign himself to that… No!  
Not that anyone would bother to come and retrieve him. Even then, only Kakuzu had the skill to do the laborious task of sewing his crushed body parts together. Hell, he would have to find them first. And to do that, he would have to be alive.

The thought that Kakuzu could die was preposterous in itself, what with him having multiple hearts and an old man's worth of battle experience, but there were many people left on that kyuubi's team, including that little shit, the Leaf ninja's pathetic student. If they had managed to kill off all of Kakuzu's hearts, there only remained Kakuzu… If Hidan could have spat, he would have. Showing concern for the one who didn't care whether his partner lived or died? Rubbish. He quickly buried these thoughts, but was instantly reminded of his own dire situation.

How the hell did he get into this mess…? Intelligence wasn't his greatest asset, so against that kid… his chances were slim from the start. He was hellishly powerful, crazy enough and cold enough to kill, but had been let down by these very traits. The defeat had deeply hurt his pride.

_Am I really going to stay blown to pieces? Fuck them all… the ones who left me like this. Who put me in this situation. Who really couldn't give a damn! Well, I couldn't either!_

Even his face… was almost crushed. What was going to become of him?

At the very moment he asked himself this question, the ear that was still attached to his skull picked up a noise from above. _Tap, tap, tap _on the ground, like the sound of footsteps, but they definitely weren't Kakuzu's. Light and springy, they grew closer and closer, until they halted directly above his head. What the hell was a kid doing here? For a moment he willed her to go away- or words to that effect- but then something that resembled hope began to burn inside. As soon as this happened he habitually quashed it with the natural assumption that the only person he could rely on was himself.

Then… _Scratch, scratch, scratch… _like someone was dabbling at the top, trying to dig through the soil with their bare hands. He heard the muffled scrabbling for what must have been at least thirty minutes, and the sound grew clearer and clearer. After that, came a voice.

"Oh? I think I've found- No way! I've found a hand. A human hand! And it's still warm."

This was a pretty crude way of describing his body parts, especially for a little girl. She was maybe in her mid-teens, and was relating herself information on pieces of what was essentially a corpse with little or no horror. She sounded _curious, _for crying out loud.

"There's a finger over here, too…"

More digging around, more innocent sounds, more of her insane chatter. The more she babbled on, the more Hidan started to regard her with amusement. She really did not care! And she was going to dig him up for sure. Eventually, she'd get to his head, and when she dug that up, he would start speaking. _Then _she would be shocked. Shocked enough to piss off. Wait- if she did that, he'd still be in a crappy situation, in pieces.

Soon a rush of cool air swept his face. She lifted his broken nerve centre above the pit and placed him next to the rest of his body. Her light touch dabbed away the dirt on his face, mixed with his own blood, and he was able to open his eyes and take in her appearance in its entirety. With a shoulder length mop of aqua hair, and equally oceanic eyes, the girl's presence was odd. The smile that pierced her pallid skin was so obviously transparent, he wondered why it was there. Her finger nails were stained with blood and dirt, and from the state of her hands, digging was what she did the most.

And the first thing that escaped from Hidan's lips was… "Who the hell are you?"

She leapt out of her skin, falling backward onto her backside. Then, her face lit up in wonder. "A talking head! That's awesome!"

"…The hell?"

"I'll put you back together. I have a needle and thread, and everything you need, right here. I carry lots of strange stuff around with me."

"How would you know how to put a body together?"

She dug around in the pack around her waist, knelt down on the ground before him, humming to herself like she was on a pleasant walk. Or another planet. After some fumbling, she pulled out exactly what she had described, a large needle and small one, and a ball of pale, strong thread.

"I know lots of things." She wound the thread around her fingers and hooked it through the large needle. "Now… I should start by putting the legs together, and then attaching those to the torso… Then fingers to hands, hands to arms… Yeah, I've got it."

Saying no more, he watched on as the girl carefully but expertly sewed his body back together, piece by piece, whilst chattering at a rushed, excited pace. Her hands moved around like they had done this a thousand times in the past. Maybe she had been a butcher's daughter, or something like that. Maybe, given her sunny disposition, she was insane, just like him.

"Okay! Now, I've got to put your ear back on. Since it's your head, it might hurt a bit. I'm not sure about these things." She laughed a carefree laugh and held his ear against the side of his face.

"The more pain, the better," he hissed out.

"You're the boss."

The burning that accompanied the handy needlework was something of a comfort, and before long, he had two functioning ears. It wasn't a long time after that when his head was fully sewn on.

"YES!"

Instantly he leapt up from the ground, wiping the remaining blood from his body. Luckily, the shreds of cloak and trousers that remained covered up most of his lower half, but his chest was exposes to the elements, and the feeling of the cool wind rushing onto it was refreshing to say the least. He was alive again!  
Not that he ever died.

"I'm glad to see you're feeling alright," she said pleasantly.

"Who are you?"

"Introduce yourself, first. Come on. I just save you. Some politeness would be nice!"

"Hidan," he muttered. He watched her get up from the ground and brush the dirt off her mail vest and black leggings, tight around her slender figure.

"I'm Mia. Mia Hayashikan."

"Fancy name."

"Not really. I was raised in an orphanage, and don't even have a home now. I might have been born in a mansion to a feudal Lord's wife, but I suppose I'll never know."

Questioning why she seemed adept at sewing parts of corpses back together, why she laughed at his talking head with no body, why she even bothered to dig him up, seemed pointless. He didn't even care. There were stranger people in the Akatsuki.

That was right… the Akatsuki. He hated the lot of them, but they were all that could help him achieve his personal goal. He had to return to them!

He yelled out manically, "I'm back, you heathens! I told you I wouldn't die. You had better be waiting. I'M ALIVE!"


	2. Chapter 2- Follower By Nature

**Hey! Sorry it's taken so long for chapter 2. I suppose I was just waiting for more reviews to come before I uploaded again, so thank you for your patience. Thank you also to those who reviewed my first chapter- you guys are great! Now please enjoy chapter 2 in all its unedited glory. Gotta love Hidan.**

See you at the bottom :)

**Chapter 2- Follower by nature**

Mia stood, watching Hidan with intense curiosity. Momentarily she reviewed her decision to save him, but then put that thought at the back of her head. She had promised herself a long time ago- no regrets. There was no point in regretting something she wanted to do at the time. She tossed her aqua hair behind her shoulders, but it stubbornly draped back forward over her eyes again.

"You're lively, for someone who was in pieces a minute ago," she commented.

He stopped yelling at the top of his lungs, and dropped his arms which were raised high like he was proclaiming to a god. His eyes, indiscernible between violet and red, travelled down and surveyed her from top to bottom. Studying peoples' expressions was something she was used to. This man, Hidan, was right now feeling utter disbelief. Not enough to care about her, but still, disbelief all the same.

"Are you immortal or something?"

"Isn't it obvious, kid?"

"I'm no kid!" she said haughtily. "…I'm sixteen. How old are you?"

"Twenty two."

"Not much age difference, then. So you can't call me a kid."

"I can if you act like one."

"You do, too. You're acting like a spoilt brat!"

He spat on the floor and stared with a sour-faced look. Mia smirked and walked closer towards his scathed body. With a body lean and solid, with lavender-grey hair swept back, his threatening expression didn't fit well at all.

What amazed Mia most of all, however, wasn't this contrast, or the talking head, or any of that… it was that someone had actually consented to talking to her.

Back 'home', in a massive war orphanage in Amegakure's outlying village of Miezawa, she was invisible. She was a relic of the past that everyone would rather disappear. Among the two hundred or so orphans, none had ever even spoken to her without prejudice from her infancy. _Demon, demon, demon… _all the time, that relentless chanting. They'd stop chanting just long enough to snigger at everything she said. She blamed this for why she grew up so twisted.  
She had to find something to occupy herself with, of course. From early childhood, blood, dead bodies, anything, nothing fazed her. As for the needlework? Well, they did teach sewing.

No tender hands had ever reached Mia. No tender words. Even deep inside, behind their awful faces, they felt hatred.

Hidan? Not at all. More hope, arrogance, absurdity. The glaze over his eyes with an indiscernible colour hid all of his emotions.

"So, where are we going?"

"Who said you're coming for the ride?"

"I am, now."

"What? No offence, but I don't need you, kid."

"I just saved your life, dumbass!"

"I wouldn't have died anyway!"

"…Maybe not, but you still need me."

She heard the frustration in his tone, but what annoyed her the most was the emotions he brought up in her. This will to fight for attention, to believe she had a chance… and to think about why she felt this way in the first place. Also, why she felt the need to say arrogant things like that.

Hidan sighed. "I'm part of this organisation. They're called the Akatsuki and they are trying to gather up all the tailed beasts, or bijuu, from their jinchuurikis and steal their chakra to start a war. Couldn't give a damn about why the leader wants it done… but anything less than complete destruction is an insult to Jashin, and that sounds like a good way to start."

"You should leave them."

"Why?"

"You just don't seem the type to blindly follow orders like a dog… Anyway, what's Jashin?"

Hidan's speech lasted what seemed like a lifetime, but Mia merely stood and listened faithfully, silently accepting his hurried words. What worried her was why he wasn't with other members of his crazy religion. Maybe they excommunicated him or something.

"Anyway, I've decided something."

"Oh yeah, what's that?"

"I'm going to go with you, no matter what. You know, I could make your boring life a whole lot more interesting!"

Hidan's brow creased in bemusement, and then he erupted into gales of manic laughter. "Seriously?" he choked. "A girl? Following me?" But it was half-hearted sneering.

She pouted. "Yeah. Why not?"

"I…"

"There isn't a reason. I promise you. We'll make a deal. If I can't make your life at least a _bit _more interesting, you can kill me for part of your crazy religion. Sound good?"

Hidan raised an eyebrow, considering her proposal. She leant on one hip, slanting them, and he once again surveyed her slender body, taking in all her shapes and curves, and then he met her expectant face again. She averted her gaze, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with the profound silence.

He cracked his knuckles and stretched a twisted grin. "Ah, why the hell not?"

Her face lit up. "Really? Really and truly?"

"I have nothing better to do. I'm bored."

"Yeah! I'm bored, too. We can ease each other's boredom."

At least she wouldn't be homeless now, she considered with relief. Technically, yes, but a home didn't have to be a place with four brick walls and a door. It could be anywhere you felt safe and wanted.

She almost giggled when her mind wandered to other things. She was almost like his ward! Maybe  
not young enough, but still…

The path forward was not really a path at all. The thin gap between the foliage was difficult to slash through, until Hidan disappeared back the way they came, only to return to the undergrowth with an enormous blade with several parts, held also by a thick grey cord for manoeuvrability. He pushed her roughly out of the way and slashed easily through much of the vegetation, creating a clear path. It was soon decided that he step in front and create the path forward for them.

They exchanged few words on the walk, but it was quite clear that Hidan had changed his mind from returning to his organisation- quite a drastic change considering that they were his first waking priority. She never asked why. Maybe he simply changed his mind frequently, impulsively. It was an impulse for her to save him, so they were on a similar level.

Behind his bare back and flexing arms, Mia felt a triumphant sensation rising up inside her.

* * *

~(^_^)~

If you liked, let me know!


	3. Chapter 3- Ritual at the Dango Shop

******Welcome to chapter 3! How are you liking it? Thank you to the people who have reviewed so far- keep it up, you are my heroes ;) So anyway, please enjoy and let me know your thoughts. PS. Hidan is so badass. ;3**

**Chapter 3- Ritual at the dango shop **

Hidan trod heavily on the ground, bored and desperately feeling the need for Mia to fulfil her promise. Was his life any more interesting? Absolutely. It would be hard for her, though, because how did you entertain a man who was so hard to thrill, just because he had no fear of injury or death? Getting his adrenaline pumping would be nigh impossible. He probably got his kicks from slaughtering innocent people, but it didn't matter to her. All these years in her situation had left her with little sympathy for the human race.

"Hey," she said suddenly. Hidan stopped dragging his feet and looked round. "Why don't we go somewhere cool to eat? I haven't eaten in so long, and I bet you need some food too."

"Fine. But don't suggest some crappy little place."

"Dango shop! Yes, I'm sure there has to be a dango shop somewhere along this valley path."

Hidan's expression turned from one of lethargy to amusement again, but he sighed and begrudgingly agreed to look for one. He'd been underground for a long time, so he was hungry, whether he knew it or not. As if in response to this, his belly rumbled loudly, causing Mia to giggle and realise her own belly was doing the same. Maybe eating sweets wasn't such a good idea for nourishment, but it didn't matter.

The sun was almost setting on the third day when a small building came into view. Mia sniffed the air and clapped her hands together in triumph.

"I knew it! Let's go."

She grabbed his wrist and dragged the now mildly irritated jashinist all the way to the building in the distance. His skin was still disconcertingly cold, and she couldn't help but finger her stitch work along his wrist and hand. He was like a mannequin, but a living, talking one with a nasty temper.  
Before long and to Mia's delight, soon the two were sat on a bench outside the shop, clutching a couple of sticks of dango.

"How's yours?"

He sniffed. "It's too sweet. This place _reeks _of those bastards Deidara and Tobi's chakra, too." He caught her expression. "They're in the Akatsuki."

"You hunted demons, right?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"It is _just _tailed beasts they're after isn't it?"

"What the hell is your point?"

"…"

"Fine." He ate one whole and got to his feet. "Got to do a ritual now, anyway. Alright! Yeah! More blood to shed, all for Lord Jashin."

Mia nodded and finished up her own dango. Curiosity was mounting up inside her to actually see one of these rituals. If sewing together a dead body didn't faze her, not much else would. She licked her sweet lips and ambled after Hidan, who was tapping the blade of his 'sword' in anticipation and gripping his other fist tightly.

Hidan swung open the door to the shop.

"Hello again," the female owner said brightly. "How was it? I hope you enjoyed it."

"Don't you think we should at least pay her first?" Mia asked casually. "..Actually, we don't have any money. Woops."

The lady's face clouded with confusion. Mia watched as Hidan began to grin a wicked grin and lick his own lips, but it definitely wasn't because of the dango. He cried out and charged for the lady, slashing openly at her. He caught some blood, drew a circle around him on the floor; he licked the edge of his blade, taking in the scarlet liquid, and to Mia's amazement, his body turned black and white, into the image of an inverted skeleton.

The lady screamed, but it was muffled under the sound of Hidan's laughter. His face was lit up with a grin of ecstasy, his tongue still circling the blood round his lips. He then proceeded to take his blade again, and drive it directly into his shoulder.

"Hidan, what are you doing?" Mia cried.

"Yeah!" he shouted, as the lady collapsed, blood pouring from her own shoulder. Looking from one to the other, Mia finally grasped the situation. Whatever injury he suffered, she did too.  
"Let's make this a slow one!"

"No!" she said. "If you finish this, you finish this _now. _It's bad enough that you got blood everywhere."

He hesitated, looked at her all over again, and dropped his head. After raising his blade once again, he drove it into his heart, and the lady's face drained of all colour. She fell face down and lay twitching for a few moments, before dying of blood loss on the floor of her shop.

Hidan then lay down himself, and splayed out on his back, breathing deeply.

This was the strangest thing Mia had ever seen. She tiptoed out of the way of the body's blood, and was standing directly above Hidan's head.

"Why do you feel the need to do this?"

"It's part of Jashin."

"But _why_?"

"They're the ones who gave me immortality. I can repay them like this."

"Is that the only reason? I want to know more!"

"Shut the hell up! I'm doing the ritual." He paused, and opened his mouth to say something else, but closed it again, and his face went oddly calm.

For the next hour, they were there in silence, with Mia watching Hidan's meditative face as he prayed to that god of his. She had a feeling that she'd touched a nerve when asking about his reasons for following Jashin. It wasn't that she was horrified by the blood, or the brutal murders… but what roused her curiosity more was why anyone would want to join a cult like that. After some thought, she realised that maybe, if she had encountered a religion who offered her immortality, that she might have joined them too.

Hidan at last rose and stood up. He cleared his throat and walked out of the shop without a word, Mia stumbling after him, determined to find out more.


	4. Chapter 4- Jashin is Law

**Hey everyone. Thank you to everyone who's reviewed so far- it's really encouraging and lovely to see that people are enjoying it. Now for chapter four... (I hope you're liking Mia... her character is hard to define sometimes) **

**Enjoy :)**

**Chapter 4- Jashin is Law**

It had been weeks since his last ritual, and Hidan's thirst for destruction was increasing every minute. The incident at the dango shop had been the last time either one of them had seen any people; straying off the beaten track was the best thing to do given his status as a missing nin. Having nothing interesting to do made him think about Jashin more, but it also made him think about Mia more.

She'd said she wasn't interested in trying to stop him being a Jashinist, just that she'd follow him to make his life less boring. What kind of motivation was that, anyway? Nothing fazed her at all. It was shocking that all that resistance could be packed up into a girl so small in stature.

Speaking of stature… He shook his head, admonishing himself for even having thoughts along those lines.

"So," Mia said, "Where now?"

"I've got to meet with other Jashinists. I was missing for a while, so…"

"So you have to let them know your whereabouts?"

"Sort of. Now will you shut up already?"

"Never!" she sang, and skipped on ahead, her hair dancing in the breeze.

"Every time we speak, you go ahead yelling and throwing yourself around the place like a maniac."

"Hidan! That's what happens every time you fight!"

He frowned in annoyance and they continued their journey with Hidan in a stony silence. He watched Mia bound in front with seemingly ceaseless energy. It was so difficult to keep an eye on her, as well. He'd gathered that she was highly curious, since every time she saw something odd, a thorough investigation was required at once, making him stand and wait.

Was it right to be thinking this, though? It was her curiosity that had saved his skin. As soon as he caught himself feeling even the slightest form of regret, he willed it away and continued gracing the world with his habitual scowl.

Jashinists normally met in secret places, away from possible human discovery, and in small, select groups. Together they regularly conducted experiments with immortality, and ways to sustain their own lives, all that while thinking of better ways to kill people. Hidan was the result of such an experiment. Plucked fresh out of his hopeless village, he was young ,fit, extremely powerful, and angry with the world; the perfect subject. It was the place where he had first met them that he and Mia were going today.

Long gone were the forested areas, and the thick undergrowth, because the further away from the Fire Country they got, the more arid and unsettled the wastelands became.

"Where are we now? I think a sandstorm's coming," Mia said, squinting.

"The Wind Country," he said through the gusts. "Two more hours and we'll be at the place."

"Good. I have sand in my mouth!"

Hidan looked over his shoulder at the trailing girl, who dragged her feet and had blue marks under her eyes. Her river of hair was swept back by the wind; it looked like the wind would blow her body over, too. They were very close now, at least. He put his hand out to signal for her to stop.

"What is it, Hidan?"

"We're here."

"Huh?"

He sighed, but said nothing more. She probably couldn't sense that, through the haze of the sandstorm, several figures were approaching, having clearly known he was coming. He hated checking in on them. As much of a believer he was, but these people were pathetic. It was their need for power that created him.

"Hey," he shouted at them, "Just thought I'd let you know I am still alive. I was incapacitated for a while, but don't worry, your stupid experiment is still here. You didn't fail."

"Anyone would think you dislike the gift we gave you," one of them replied.

"I can decapitate and destroy forever, thanks to you and Jashin." His voice had a slightly strained bravado that he hoped no one noticed. Mia shrunk closer to him.

"Good. Lord Jashin will be very happy. Now I can see the girl with you. Who's that one? Keeping the torture victims as pets, are you?"

"She's…"

"Don't tell me Hidan's lost his heart to a non-believer?" someone else jeered.

Hidan swore loudly. "Shut the hell up. She doesn't matter to me at all," he laughed. "I'm sick of babysitting, but I can get rid of her, so I let her tag along."

He glanced back at Mia, and immediately that uncomfortable feeling of regret welled up inside his unfeeling body. His heart rate quickened, so he dug his nails into his other arm, drawing blood and concentrating on that sweet, sweet pain instead. Her bottom lip trembled.

"Well Hidan, at least we know you're alive. Nevertheless, anything less that decimation is a sin. Kill the girl soon… or…"

"You'll kill me? Ah, come on. You know you can't do that."

"We know how to reverse the spell, Hidan. I hope you know that. I don't want to have to do it, but if the time comes, we will. We're still looking for ways to make you completely immortal, but if you keep disobeying, we will terminate the experiment. Think carefully about where you go from here."

Later on that day, the two had finally reached calm ground. Small patches of parched grass were beginning to appear in the landscape, indicating that they were making good headway towards civilisation, but no location in particular. Wandering travellers, indeed.

"Hidan," Mia said, sniffing, "Do you hate me?"

He seized up. "Aw geez, don't cry, you little brat!"

"Answer my question."

"Stop being so depressing. Just smile already, will you? You always do."

"I saw you with your people earlier… you turned into someone different. You looked hurt, and bloodthirsty."

"I'm always bloodthirsty."

"But you looked hurt, too. Hidan, do you really want to be immortal?"

"Shut the hell up and walk."

Why was she being so irritating? She made him think about the fundamental parts of his existence. He hated people like that. But what he hated more was these horrible, unfamiliar feelings inside him. He found himself thinking of his old village, what he used to do there, those people that he long ago called his family.

He grunted some other insult, and turned to face ahead and ignore her in a stony silence. He couldn't see the dejected face of the girl behind him.

* * *

Thanks! PS. This story may be moved to the 'M' section in the future, because things will get rather... citrusy... later on... what with the lemons. Just be warned ;)


	5. Chapter 5- Mia the Killer

**Hi! I can't believe it, 12 reviews so far. Thank you so much to anyone who's reviewed. Keep it up, it's so encouraging. Now, for chapter 5. I may have mentioned this in the last chapter (can't remember), but this story may be moving to an 'M' rating because there WILL be strong lemons near the end. So be warned :)**

**So anyway, enjoy!**

**Chapter 5- Mia the killer **

"Don't you dare look!" Mia cried.  
She shrugged off the towel that she had stolen in the last village, and sunk luxuriously into the warm water of the natural hot spring. It was fantastic to be able to relax once in a while, ponder some things, and get fresh air too. At least now she had someone to guard her clothes.

Hidan, who was stood behind a nearby tree, shouted back, "Why would I want to do that? You're as flat as a chopping board."

"Liar. I'm bigger than that and you know it." She was right, of course. She flushed and sank deeper so the water went up to her face. He was so insulting sometimes.

"Just hurry up!"

"I swear I won't take that long! But I am a girl, so I do need some time to be feminine. Ha!" Her feet dabbled at the bottom of the pool, and then came across something odd. She reached down and picked up the thing that her foot had discovered. "Hey Hidan- I just found a dead rabbit in the pool…"

"Just throw it out then. For crying out loud."

"It's got such a cute face… But okay." She tossed the rabbit away and continued her ambling and wondering.

What struck her was that this was a perfect time for Hidan to leave, if he wanted to. He could have dropped her clothes and crept away into the night, too quietly for a normal girl's dull ears to hear. It wasn't like his stitches needed cleaning anymore. She wasn't complaining, of course. It was a mystery what drew her to him, but the more she thought about it, the more her face would begin to heat up.

Hidan was a killer, a member of a religion that believed in utter destruction and murder. It was the way he had lived for years. But he was also an outcast from society, a freak even among his own people. That small part of their lives intertwined, giving them something in common. This was the small bit of hope that Mia needed, but she couldn't help but feel there was some measure of distance between the two of them.

It was a bridge, and there was only one thing Mia could do that would make her an equal of Hidan's.

"Are you nearly done yet?" he said impatiently, and she heard some movement from where he was.

Mia turned around, and it took her a few seconds to register what she was seeing.

They were face-to-face. Hidan had actually stepped away from the tree and was staring with interest right at her. The waist-high water tickled at her stomach, but soon stilled along with her body. His brow was furrowed, but her eyebrows shot upward.

"Um…Hidan. What do you think you're doing?" she asked pleasantly.

"It's not what you think," he said crossly. "Just hurry up so we can set up camp." That was a lie if ever she heard one.

An amicable smile spread over Mia's face, but Hidan sensed what was coming.

"Fuck…" he muttered.

Mia leapt out of the water, slung the towel back on and cracked her knuckles. Hidan, the immortal and powerful shinobi, swore again under his breath before the girl clenched her fists and beat him until her hands hurt.

The camp fire was crackling, and Hidan and Mia sat at opposite sides, with Mia still smiling and Hidan with his habitual scowl. She was sure he had been peeking, but he was still refusing to own up to it. What unnerved her a little was the way he had been looking at her since she had dried her hair with the towel and freshened up. Sure, all the dirt cuts had been cleaned from her face. Sure, her elbow-length cerulean hair had been washed for the first time in aeons. But that didn't warrant all those odd looks on his face.

Suddenly, Hidan's ears pricked and he made a deft movement to his feet. He flung the damp towel on the fire, putting it out, and stared into the distance.

"What's wrong?"

He didn't look at her, and said, "Jashinists are nearby. Ah, man… Leave me the hell alone!"

So he had put out the fire to avoid alerting them…

"Hidan… Are Jashinists ninjas?"

He shook his head. "Just normal people. Normal crazy people, mixed with some shinobi defectors like me. The ones who are looking for us are ordinary people."

Mia did a sharp intake of breath. If they found them, this would be her chance to put her on equal footing with Hidan. She got to her feet and yelled out, "Hello! Weird Jashin people- we're over here!"

"What in Jashin's name are you doing, you idiot?!" he barked.

"Hello! Just follow my voice and we'll be waiting!"

He grabbed her and covered her mouth, but it was too late. Within seconds, the ruffling of shrubs nearby was heard and three figures appeared through the foliage.

It was two males and one girl. The girl was probably nearing seventeen or eighteen, with a sumptuous figure and rich brown hair; she seemed a person with great potential in life… Which begged the question as to why she was there in the first place. One of the males was around Mia's age, with a baby-like face and angelic hair, and the other was older, tall, lanky and hostile-looking. They were all looking at Mia and Hidan like hungry animals.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Hidan muttered.

"We came to join you, of course?" the baby-faced boy said, with an irritating heightened inflection at the end of his statement.

"That is, if you don't mind," the girl added.

"I don't need a couple of annoying teenagers tagging along with me, okay? Just get lost and I won't kill you."

The lanky boy sniggered. He pointed to Mia, who continued to smile. "You've already got one, I see. I didn't think you were a lolicon, Hidan, but clearly I was mistaken."

"Look- Ruriko, Yusuke, Kai… Get lost!"

"I can get rid of them for you, Hidan," Mia offered.

"You can't do a thing."

"Oh, really?"

This was her chance! She darted forward, quick and agile. Years of running from people had benefited her after all. The three people were immediately taken off guard, and the last to react was the one Hidan called Kai, the jeering, lanky male whose eyes widened upon seeing Mia coming towards him. She raised the fist that beat Hidan earlier, and slammed it into the boy's face. He cried out and smacked to the ground, winded completely. He hit his head on a rock, too. As she was pummelling his face and body, Mia seemed to feel a kind of numbness. Even as the blood started trickling from his nose, and she was sure he had fallen beneath consciousness.

She stood properly and gave him one last kick in the abdomen, ensuring his fate.

"There," she said shakily. "I hope you get the message."

Yusuke's face lit up. "That was awesome! Thank you for getting rid of that bastard, girl."

"That settles it," Ruriko said, "We're following you both."

Yusuke and Ruriko slept surprisingly soundly around the newly burning fire, later on that evening. Their faces were peaceful in sleep. Mia wasn't sure how she felt about them following her and Hidan on their travels, seeing as she had beat their comrade to death, but it was clear now that this was a new chapter in their story.

"Mia…" Hidan muttered.

They were sat next to each other now, watching their two followers.

"What is it?"

"Why did you beat that guy to death?"

She laughed feebly. "Does it bother you?" His scowl said it all, really.

"You seem bothered by it."

Her smile broke under the pressure of the look on his face, and hers became clouded with uncertainty.

"I don't know…" she mumbled, "I just had this idea. I wanted you to see me as your equal, to put us on the same level. Things started out unfair, with me being above you and saving you from underground, and then all you did was insult me and put me beneath you, making you above me. I wanted it to be equal, because then I might earn a bit of your respect. I saw it as a challenge, but also an opportunity to get close to a person for the first time ever… I guess it does bother me a little It hasn't sunk in yet."

All of it came gushing out in a monologue. She felt her face flushing from the sudden descent into serious conversation, something that she found highly uncomfortable. Sharing feelings with anyone was difficult, let alone a person like Hidan. Who knew how she was going to be received?

"You got that right," he replied. "You are almost my equal now. We're both murderers. But I enjoy the blood, the pain in their voices. What I don't want is to be immortal, actually. It sucks, sometimes."

They both sighed and were left to their silent thoughts. He reached out and put his hand on hers.

"What the…?"

"It's hard, the first time you kill, isn't it?" he said in an oddly contemplative tone.

She shifted closer to him.

"Yeah, it is."


	6. Chapter 6- The New 'Comrades'

**Oh ****hello, chapter 6 here. Next chapter the story will officially be moving up to 'M' status because of the limey bits :3 So I'll be putting the rating up when that comes out. Well, things move at a pretty fast pace here, but this won't be a very long story. Please enjoy and review. Everyone who has done so gets all my grattitude and a box of fresh cookies. :)**

**Chapter 6- The new comrades **

Hidan didn't know what he was thinking when he did that. As he lay down and prepared to go to sleep, he felt fury rising up inside him. It was fury at the confusion he felt. Assuming that his hand just moved on its own was easy, but startlingly untrue. There was that need, that desire to comfort her, when she wore that sad expression, on top of the other desire within him as well. He felt himself weakening under these thoughts and that was what angered him so greatly.

The next morning, Mia was already awake and chatting to Yusuke and Ruriko like they were old friends. A smile was once again painted on her face, and on the surface things looked normal. Yusuke was sitting awfully close to her, though, with that stupidly carefree grin. Why was he even a Jashinist? He supposed that everyone had their reasons.

"Oh, Hidan's up!" Yusuke announced. "Have some fish. Ruriko went and caught some." He handed Hidan a stick with a small fish spiked on the end. "We cooked it while you were sleeping."

"Don't bother Hidan when he's just woken up," Mia laughed. "He's cranky."

He snatched the stick and chewed silently on the fish while watching the three of them. His eyes made contact with Mia's, but she flushed scarlet and looked straight back at the other two, continuing the small talk. He glowered at them more- it was like she was _trying _to avoid talking to him. Maybe he'd scared her last night.

"Sorry," Ruriko said with an apologetic smile.

Hidan narrowed his eyes and muttered a small string of colourful words at her. Something wasn't quite right here. Jashinists were never friendly, never cheerful or _nice. _The basic principle was to destroy life to honour Lord Jashin, not to preserve it with kindness. They were being overly cosy with Mia, too, who was naively accepting their company, drawing her in. But why? His nose wrinkled with suspicious distaste.

Yusuke frowned. "The mighty Jashin probably wonders what we are doing," he mused, nodding. "I haven't actually done a ritual in days."

Ruriko agreed silently.

"I'll just have to pray extra tonight, then, because there are hardly any people around here. Hidan, why are you two travelling in these deserted places?"

"Why the fuck would I tell you?"

"Well," Mia interrupted pointedly, "It's because Hidan was part of the criminal organisation called Akatsuki, and he could be recognised easily because of his crimes and association with them. It's simple, really."

"You can't skulk around in deserted forests and wastelands forever, you know. Ruriko and I were on our way to Hiyazawa anyway; we can take you there to enjoy the sights. It'll be good for this guy to improve his social skills, too." He pointed casually at Hidan.

Mia bounded to Hidan and clasped her hands together in a begging style. A warm feeling gathered in his trousers, but he pushed this feeling away to shoot out some rude words.

"Please can we go with them?" she asked, "Come on, I bet it'll be fun."

He stared at her for a long and excruciatingly awkward while, before nodding and saying, "Fine, but if it's uphill, you can forget it."

Yusuke cheered, and Ruriko supplied a friendly smile. And with that, the oddly mixed crew were travelling to Hiyazawa, the bustling and busy town a few miles down the road.  
The central nerve was lined with food stalls and street sellers, shouting their trades down the road with determined expressions and waving their products at passers by, who smiled politely and either refused or went to sample the produce. Mia watched the children clasp the waiting hands of their mothers, toys in their other hands, and trade loving smiles. Mia's expression fell for a few seconds, before she seemed to remember who she was with and switched on her habitual sunny persona.

After the lengthy walk down the main street, the four found themselves in a thankfully human-less eatery place, sat at a bar with food and-somehow- all the things Mia had collected on the way to it.

"How did you manage to buy all that stuff?" Yusuke enquired.

"I didn't buy it," she replied, mouth filled with sushi.

He nodded. "Fair enough. Now, come with me, I need to talk to you…"

Yusuke grabbed her by the arm, dragged her roughly off the stool and gestured for Ruriko to come along. Mia's protests went ignored, as were Hidan's profane objections. He watched them drag her down and waited until they were in the bar's back room until following behind and eavesdropping outside the door. This was the kind of behaviour from them that he had expected, but he was nevertheless still intensely interested in what they would say.

"So…"

He heard a thump, like she had been backed into the wall.

"So, Mia, we have to take you with us, unfortunately." Yusuke's voice, the voice Hidan had been so used to hearing, surfaced. "We know all about you."

"What? I'm just an orphan, nothing more!"

Another thump. Why wasn't Mia defending herself?

"Did you know," Ruriko taunted, "how Hidan became immortal? It was the first successful Jashinist experiment, because that time, they used chakra from a kekkei genkai…"

"The Hayashikan clan were famous for the chakra they claimed made them impervious to death. Even if you beheaded them, they just didn't die. But unfortunately, someone _did _chop them all to pieces and bury them in another place, far from any humans. That bloodbath must have happened when _you _were a little baby…"

"In other words, the only Hayashikan intact, with all the immortality chakra, is you… We need you. Jashinists had to kill one to get the power of Hayashikan for Hidan, but then they were all decapitated. Even we don't know where they are buried. We need you chakra, Mia, to make our leader immortal. Now we know that method works, we can use you!"

This was the point where Hidan gritted his teeth. He rammed the door open and took Yusuke and Ruriko out in one deft swish of his blade. The blood splattered everywhere, staining Mia's shocked and pretty face, but he ignored it and grabbed her hand, leading her out of the room with the growing pool of blood spreading inside it.

"Damn those fucking bastards!" he cursed violently, still holding her hand.

"Is it true though?" she asked quietly. "Is that why… When I was little, people never came near me. They called me a demon child. Is that true? Am I… like you? Did your people steal my clan's power? I didn't even know who I was before now, but now I know…"

"It's true. I didn't know either, so don't look at me with that sad face."

She sniffed. "In any case… thanks for saving me."

"Why didn't you fight back, you fool?"

"I still hung onto the belief that they were my friends. I thought I would need people like that around me to be happy, but…" She looked at him wordlessly.

So innocent, naïve, so beautifully pure. He didn't care about anything anymore but responding to the aching need in his heart, in his body, too. He took her blood-stained face in his hands, having dropped his blade in a clatter to the floor, and placed his heated lips onto hers.


	7. Chapter 7- Flame

**HellooO! Sorry it's been so long. I completely forgot to update. Anyway, here it is, the much-promised citrus content. There'll be more where that came from, too. Enjoy and review as always, lovely people (^_^)**

**Chapter 7- Flame**

The back room of the eatery was hardly a prepossessing backdrop, but in a spot away from what was once Yusuke and Ruriko, Mia couldn't believe what Hidan was doing.

"I can feel your eyes on me…" she mumbled when he drew away from the kiss, her face red.

Before she knew it, he had her pinned to the floor and he sunk down to kiss her again. Having never had any sort of contact like this, Mia was naïve to the longings within her. This childishness made her feel ashamed, and Hidan could sense her tension. He drew back, quivering above her.

"You've gone shy?" he questioned, half-smiling.

"No!" she replied indignantly, but he clearly sensed the uncertainty in her voice.

"I won't rush into anything, if that's what you're thinking." He smirked. "Besides, you probably wouldn't know what you were doing, when you were doing it."

"I'm not that ignorant!"

"Good to hear. Because there's plenty of things I'd like to do to you, Mia Hayashikan…Just tell me when you've had enough."

She felt herself blush, and her body grew warm. He lowered himself and pressed his hips to hers, stroking her face. Something stirred in her belly, which was in confused knots. More of his weight pressed down onto her and once again Hidan's lips were gracing her face, and then tracing lines down her neck, leaving trails of fire behind them. As he met her mouth again, she couldn't help but reach up and lace her tiny hands into his hair, attempting to hold him in place.

"That's it," he encouraged, breathless, and continued to kiss her but with a triumphant smirk.

This time, he darted his tongue into her mouth, exploring the inside, making a small noise escape from Mia. He laughed a low rumble in his chest. Mia couldn't help but think that this was a totally different Hidan to his normal persona. It was free, honest, but fiery and so him.

So she decided to reciprocate. She tentatively poked her tongue into his mouth, and he made a very human kind of noise and fought back. She felt oddly happy, knowing she had disarmed him, and caught his tongue, sucking on it like a baby.

"Mia!" he growled, briefly breaking off, before turning his attention to her neck once more, dashing more scorching kisses along her quivering skin. His hands wandered and roamed around her body, snaking up her thighs, and suddenly he pushed himself between her legs and her body tightened. He was knelt between her on the floor, hands exploring, mouth caressing. Mia's hands were still hopelessly entangled in his hair. He always groaned when she gave it a tug.

As a hand found its way to a new place, she finally relented to her brain which told her to say…

"Okay, stop."

He paused where he was, and immediately rolled over to be on his back beside her. They were both breathing like they'd run a marathon, and Mia instinctively reached out to hold his searing hand.

"Hidan…" she sighed.

"You're one hell of a girl," Hidan exclaimed. "Thank Jashin you told me to stop when I did, because otherwise there would have been consequences."

His shamelessly mischievous tone had her almost squirming from the way she heated up under its power. He smiled wider.

"You really get a kick out of seeing me like this, don't you?"

He snorted. "It's the Jashinist within me."

Hidan's advances may not have been any semblance of love, compassion or any of that. Desire, for sure, and curiosity, too. Nevertheless, as they left the bloody room in the eatery, Mia felt far more attached to him than she had before. She had to admit… she'd felt attached to him since she fist found him, in body bits buried underground, but this was stronger, and she'd never felt it before.

It must have taken a lot for him to finally show him a little of his true self, but it wasn't enough for her liking.

_I have to be patient… _she thought firmly, _Give him some time to open up. Maybe he has feelings for me, maybe not… Ah, I don't know what in the world to do! Give me strength, if you're real, Lord Jashin!_

It did no good overthinking this. She switched on her sunny smile and followed him from the town wordlessly, flitting inquisitively about just as she always had, and ignoring Hidan. He was acting like what they did was meaningless. And she thought it had great meaning. Bad combination, there.

"Are you going to tell me what the fucking problem is, Mia?" he came out with suddenly, a mile or so from town.

She stopped dead in her tracks and swivelled round. "Whatever are you saying?"

"You haven't said a word since we left town…"

"I wouldn't have thought that bothered you, you know, since you're focused on so much else." Mia couldn't help the note of thinly veiled resentment that snuck into her tone.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, it's fine!"

He sighed in frustration and stepped in front of her, forcing her to look directly at him. She turned stubbornly to the side.

"Man, Mia," he said, scratching the back of his head. "If you're that bothered about something, just tell me."

"Fine! It's because…B-because you're acting like what we did earlier meant nothing at all! You were fine while we were in there, and you just walked out like nothing had happened between us. I don't know what you're thinking. Hidan, I said I'd follow you to make your life less boring, right? Well, haven't I at least done that?"

He blinked, and his humoured expression died down.

"I never saw you this serious about something."

"Likewise. You were serious earlier."

He tensed. "Yeah, I guess. Ah, I'm sorry, Mia. Jashinists don't get to love, you know."

"And neither do orphaned immortal clan girls with hefty emotional baggage apparently." Her lips began to tremble, and before he could see her tears, she hurtled off into the forest, alone.


	8. Chapter 8- Healing

Hi guys, chapter 8 is here! We get to see Hidan's softer side emerge again. No citrusy goodness I may say, but that will come later. Reviews, my lovelies. (Thank you for your support thus far :D)

**Chapter 8- Healing**

"Ah, come on Mia, don't be all like: 'I hate you now!'" he called after her. "The commandments are very strict, you know, and I can't get away from mass slaughter."

The girl ignored his shouts and disappeared farther into the thicket at the clumsy pace of a normal human. He stared after her.

She was in an immortal clan, the clan whose chakra was used to make him into what he was, this thing. No-one could kill her- the only way she would die would either be starvation or old age, the natural causes. It was the same with him. Maybe that was why he gave into the desire inside him to do that with her, to connect. A like-minded soul was difficult to come across. And he had revealed some of his real self to her- damn! Those words he had said… Did they mean anything? Of course they did.

"Jashin, if they could kill me, I'd want them to… Isn't that what I always said? If I could get away from following your damned commandments, I would, right? I'm sick of all this fucked-up-ness."

His frustrated words were called on deaf ears. How was he to know if Jashin was even a true being? It could be some pathetic myth invented by a group of thugs looking for something, anything, to believe in. The experiments, he knew now, were nothing more than the theft of chakra from Mia's people, who had been buried into the ground. They were not dead, he could attest to that, but they were six feet under for sure. Was it wrong to ignore Mia's feelings? (He had to remind himself that a girl like her actually possessed such things- she was always so carefree).

It did no good overthinking it like a kid. He had to find her before she- he- did something stupid and irrational. More stupid and irrational than usual, at least.

"You are a _ninja, _Hidan…" He reminded himself of his days back when he graduated ninja academy in Yugakure, back in its glory days as a prominent shinobi village. The education was exceptional, but not the strength of their personalities- they themselves believed they were weak, despite their skill, and so they allowed the village to deteriorate in prestige to a common tourist attraction to generate more wealth. The bitterness welled inside him till he remembered why he thought of it in the first place- he wasn't just a Jashinist, he was a ninja, with skills beyond that of the immortality techniques.

He threw his senses out into the open, and sensed that Mia was running East, in the direction of Konoha- the Leaf _bastards- _not that she was to know exactly what happened between him and them. It would be easy to catch up to her, weak as she was, and full of food which would also slow her down. Yes, he could catch her and it would be all apologies and soft stuff like that.

Digging his feet into the ground, Hidan launched himself and began running at full speed (though for an ex-Akatsuki member, he was rather slow) in the direction of Mia's chakra. She really wasn't far away, and he caught right up to her within minutes.

"Mia! What the hell are you doing?" he shouted.

She was crouched against a tree, and he was startled to see that she was sobbing. But it was quiet crying, not crying for attention or anything like that.

"Mia. Stop that now!"

She was also digging her fist into the tree, grinding it, in an effort to stop her tears.

Why was she doing that? What had he done now? All he had done was… Well, he did kiss her… a lot… and tell her those words… and then acted as if nothing had happened. He had treated her like she was expendable and like a child. But there was still no cause for this kind of overreaction. Still, who was he to lecture anyone on overreaction?

"Hey," he said, not shouting this time. He went to crouch next to her and grabbed her grazed fist, taking it in his rough, warm hands. What do you think you're doing?"

"What do you want?" she muttered.

"Come on, are you really that mad at me? I'm sorry, okay?" He really didn't realise that she was such a complicated girl. Cheerful, indeed, but complicated. This was so much more than he was expecting. At least she wasn't boring him.

"You're not sorry. You're never sorry." She eyed their linked hands. "I don't know why I do this. I guess I just want to die sometimes. When bad things happen, they're just the fucking catalysts."

He raised his eyebrows at the language. He must be rubbing off on her. "I know how that feels. If I could be killed, I'd let my enemies kill me, but I can't, so I may as well have a bit of fun while killing them. I enjoy the pain because I can imagine killing myself when they die." Letting out a bit of emotion was hard, so hard, but to stop her from hurting herself, it was the only way to act.

"I didn't know someone like you could be so understanding…"

"Hey, I have my moments."

"Maybe this is what you were like before you became a Jashinist. You could go back to how you were, couldn't you?"

"I'll never stop loving the pain, though. We're not going to die of this, Mia, there's no point in hurting yourself like a dumbass who doesn't know the value of others' pain. Just stop doing this and come back to me, and we can ease each other's boredom some more, okay?"

She sighed and nodded, and he sighed too, finally having gotten through to this crazy girl. Hey, they were both crazy. They were just right for each other.  
He'd thought she was immature, happy-go-lucky, incredibly unaffected by blood and gore, and a bit of a brat, but now he knew so much more. And what was he? What was he to her? She wanted to be there with him, but was that all? Was he simply a replacement for a family? That couldn't be it. Things seemed simpler, but so much more complicated still.

"Let's go. I bet there's a shop or an inn nearby."

"You're going to do another ritual?"

"Hell yeah, I need to appease the mighty Jashin!"

"I think you just enjoy the blood."

"Heh… maybe."

He planted a kiss on her forehead, surprising them both. Mia sniffed back the tears and laughed. "You can be nice, I knew it," she mumbled.

"Only to Mia," he replied simply, and went in to kiss her lips. She sighed and parted hers, leaning into him. He smirked; she was getting better at answering her instincts. He responded by urging her closer towards him and stroking through her hair, parting his own lips.

They pulled back a bit, and he triumphantly observed Mia's blush.

"You've got no idea what you do to me, Mia," he said, still breathlessly close.

"I'm not sure I want you to explain," she chuckled.

Hidan smiled back, and he helped her to her feet, pulling her body towards his and slipping his hand slyly around her waist. Then he lead her out of the forest, stroking her with an odd tenderness.


	9. Chapter 9- Compassion

Hi! Sorry it's been so long since I updated. But chapter 9 is here. I wrote this for more feels, but things are moving forward for Mia and Hidan! Just wait till next week... LEMONS. Reviews, fellas and ladies :)

**Chapter 9- Compassion**

Mia was totally stunned by Hidan's behaviour. _You're not sorry. You're never sorry. _Those words had been true, but there was something in Hidan's voice that rang a little deeper. Had he been genuinely sorry? She'd never know unless she asked, and she wasn't going to do that. But from the way he had held her wait, and the way he was now holding her hand…

She tugged on his hand.

"What?"

"Look, I'm sorry I ran off, okay?"

"It's fine. I messed up."

"Yeah, you did." She laughed. "But that's okay. I know you probably just panicked or something. I overreacted. I'm just used to being abandoned so I assumed you'd do it to me as well. Twisted, isn't it?"

"Kind of. But find me a person or a ninja who _wasn't _twisted by this damned system we have."

"I don't know much about ninjas other than that they destroyed my life… But I get what you mean."

"It's not just that. As well as me being a ninja, Jashinists have to destroy, they can't love."

She sighed loudly. "But Hidan! It's not that you can't, it's that you won't! You're scared because Jashinism is the only thing you think you can trust in. You can trust in me, you know."

He was impossible. He was making a self-fulfilling prophecy. If he didn't believe he could love, he wouldn't. She had to fix that and bring out the softer side in him, to heal this wounded man with her own wounded heart. It was a tall order, but not impossible, and she could see there were many obstacles.

"You're the only person I can trust," he muttered, tightening his grip.

Quietness overcame her for a few moments as she absorbed the deeper meaning that could be sensed behind his words. At first he'd been determined to get close, but now she wanted to understand him, he seemed to want to pull back. Why? There must be something under that tough skin of his that needed fixing. The passive way in which she'd accepted him at the start was quickly dissolving inside her and now Mia found herself willing to understand this enigmatic, violent man.

What could she do?

"Hidan...?"

He sighed. "What?"

"You know lots about me, about how I grew up, but I don't know anything about you at all. What were you like as a kid? I wanna know." She made a point of giving eye contact.

Hidan snorted in derision. "Really?"

"Yeah! I'm curious."

"Well I was smart," he said proudly. "I got bored easily in the academy classes. But I never had a problem following the ninja codes of conduct, you know, the ones my village got from the Leaf. It was something about ninjas never being able to show their tears. It was a rule they made up to kill your doubt. I used to take the whole 'no mercy' belief I had a bit too far, as well, when we did sparring."

Mia laughed. That was odd to hear, but it was so like him. "So what about your family then? Was your father a ninja? Was your mother a ninja?"

"Yes, and no." His face tightened. Dangerous territory? Regardless, he went on. "It wasn't long after they died when I was kid, that the Jashinists sought me out. They badgered me for years. When the village became a shitty tourist site, I saw that as good enough reason to go missing, and so I did."

He'd skipped right over the part about his family. It was a touchy subject. Mia didn't like al this serious talk now, anyway. They needed something new after this incident. A fresh start on life.

"Hidan… Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we try living among normal people for a while? Not pricks like Yusuke and Ruriko, but real people. Like, in a village or something. It would be fun, wouldn't it?"

"You're impulsive."

"So are you!"

They smirked at each other for a moment.

With Hidan's reluctant agreement, she was leading him towards the nearest beaten track, which trailed towards a rather quaint-looking village down in a valley; it was a short walk, maybe five miles or so away, which was child's play with the kind of life they were living.

Kinamizawa was just as quaint as it had looked from a distance. From the look on Hidan's face, he was a little disappointed with the turnout. It wasn't much of a village- maybe ten or eleven houses and one tiny shop. The houses were all made of wood, built strong for the powerful winds that raged through the area frequently, with baskets of tiny flowers surrounding them, and no gardens but communal patches of grass that seemed to alleviate the need for private land. She saw a lady washing clothes behind one house, and a couple of children running about, but other than that, the place was pretty peaceful and deserted.

"This seems like a nice place!" she said brightly.

"I can't kill anyone here."

"Stop that sour look now. You don't _have _to kill anyone. I said I wouldn't try to stop you from your religion, but maybe it'll be good for it not to be the centre of your life for once."

"That's blasphemy, you little-"

"Just try! For me…"

"Hey- you two!" A voice sounded, and Mia turned to see a young lad of around her age running towards them. With that stern shoulder length auburn hair and assured black eyes, she could see he wasn't someone who backed down easily.

"Hi," she said in as friendly a manner as she could manage. "Is there a problem?"

"What are you doing here?" He didn't sound hostile.

Hidan intercepted, "Mia here and I were looking for somewhere to stay for a while. You got anywhere here?"

She almost giggled at how polite he was being. He had a resentful, bashful look on his face as he tried to suppress the monster within (or the monster on the outside that was now locked away behind his true self…). He ran a hand through his hair and she smiled at the boy while he considered them.

"We've got one spare house… a man and his wife recently left the village. I guess you could stay there. Actually no, I'm sure there wouldn't be a problem. Sorry for my rudeness. We just don't get many visitors! Given the size of Kinamizawa, I'm sure you can understand why." He held out his hand. "I'm Keigomaru Ushida. Since we're friendly, call me Keigo."

"Okay! Hi Keigo. I'm Mia Hayashikan, and this is Hidan."

"What's with the weird sword?" he asked bluntly, pointing at Hidan's scarlet weapon.

"Oh, it's just something we carry around with us. Pay it no mind."

"Okay. I have a friend who's a Hayashikan, you know. His name is Ryuu. You might get to meet him someday."

Before Mia could interrogate him over this, they were lead to a small hut near the centre of the village. It had a veranda, a rocking chair on it, and looked like a little family home. She smirked at the irony. She and Hidan were hardly suited for a life like this, but it might be a welcome change. She decided to do her best in helping this man find who he was again.

"Alright Keigo," Hidan said in his menacing cheerfulness, "Fuck off now. Tell your elders about us, but other than that, leave us alone."

"Hidan!" Mia scolded. "That wasn't nice."

"I'm a bit more cheerful than I was when we got here. Just cut me some slack."

Keigo shrugged and pranced away, clearly offended, leaving Mia smiling apologetically to his back while he sauntered off. Keigo didn't seem to be a bad person, but impressions were very different from the real person underneath, as she had found with Hidan.

Kinamizawa… this odd little village. It could become their home for a while. She didn't know if such a life suited them, but if it could distract Hidan from Jashinism, even for a few days, it would be worth it. Also, this was their very own house now… she let her mind stray to less decent thoughts, before admonishing herself internally for her mind's track. She remembered the time in the eatery, what they had done then, remembered the feeling of her heart hammering in her chest, the feel of his warm breath on her mouth, and squirmed with anticipation and worry.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Hidan grinned like a mind-reader. "Come on inside. We have some unfinished business."

Mia sighed up at the sky; it was getting dark, pinks and oranges colouring the world above. Maybe this time, he would be more loving.

"Oh, okay. Already?"

"I won't stop this time."

"I wouldn't ask you to."

"I know."


	10. Chapter 10- Strange Love

**Hello! Sorry for the long gap between updates. Now we have that chapter... !Attention! Strong LEMONS. Run far away and do not return...**

**Still here?**

**Okay, enjoy some Hidan X OC lemons. :) Chapter 10: Enjoy and review!**

**Chapter 10- Strange Love**

Hidan had been wearing a stolen mail vest for the past week or so, and Mia her mail vest and shorts. He eyed her assets, letting his mind slip into that frame of thinking; they were a nice size, and suited her petite but lean body attractively. He stopped thinking of this, and realised for the first time just how pretty her face was, how soft her aqua hair looked.  
He took her hand and led her into the house, closing the door hurriedly behind them. There was nothing on the floor but a sitting mat or two, and this was fine. He could have cheered with triumph- Mia looked like she was growing weaker by the second at the small circles he rubbed on her hand with the pad of his thumb.

"You seem different than how you were," she said.

"Yeah, well," he replied a little loudly, "This is a different situation."

Damn, he thought, I can be such a dumbass idiot sometimes. Why does this girl even hang around me? He knew the answer to that deep down, but part of him rejected that thought with a cautious pessimism. He relaxed, and slipped back into that persona she seemed to find most thrilling last time around.

He grabbed her so that he was stood behind her with his hands around her stomach, rubbing circles. After having fought back the urge to do it for so long, he bent down and kissed her neck with renewed vigour, feeling her body- and his- warming up each second. He breathed on her skin, making the hairs on her neck stand up. This was right, this was the right feeling. There couldn't have been a better moment than this.

She leaned against him, and he took this as a sign to continue, pulling her closer. He could feel the want inside him, and the same in her escaping in waves. Every instinct inside him was crying at him to keep going, to make this contact last a little longer. He wanted to be with her, if only once, if only.

He allowed his lips to find their way up her neck as she let out a sigh, and this not a sound she usually made, and he bit her earlobe in a playful manner, rumbling an uncharacteristic laugh.

"Do you want to go on?" he asked.

"I thought you weren't going to stop?" she smiled.

"Nope."

He liked this, being in control this way over her body, but emotionally he was bared open to this girl, his mind weakening each and every moment he spent a slave to his attraction. So he was affronted and surprised with glee when she turned herself around to face him and brought her face up to meet his, planting her soft lips on his own weatherworn pair.

"Mia…" he said in a low voice, unable to think of anything comprehensible to say to such a girl.

He worked his tongue into the kiss and prolonged it as long as possible, picking up the speed, making both their hearts race in synchronisation. She breathed a small giggle into their moving lips, fighting against him- this made him want to fight back even more, and soon he found himself mixed in a brew of annoyance and insane attraction towards her. He let his hands explore her back and waist while she planted her hands into his hair. He knew what was probably coming. She gave his hair a tug, and he couldn't control the small noise that escaped his mouth and brought him almost falling towards her. He guided her slowly down to the floor where he placed himself between her legs and sank down to kiss her again, holding her down with his hips.

She could clearly feel his bump pressed against her area, and he felt her tighten in response from tension.

"Relax," he said, breaking the kiss, "Or it'll hurt more."

"You're a ninja, right? So will doing it with you be different than with an ordinary guy?"

"Yeah." He whispered to her, "It'll be better."

She coiled in a mix of excitement and fear. He knew the true extent of her inexperience, so did not allow himself to get _too _carried away.

Still, she didn't seem to mind yet.

He slipped off her top, and she did his, so he was half-naked in front of her. His muscular body flexed and shone a little under the dim moonlight of the night, the battle-scars all but forgotten in the midst of his feelings. Her breasts were even lovelier without anything covering them, so lovely that he had to kiss them, to touch them and afterwards slide off his sandals and trousers. Mia wanted to be equal- she copied him, and the tension and heat between was rising all the time.

"Mia, you have an awesome body," he let out.

"Uh, thanks. You do too."

He laughed at her innocence, her purity. Soon their underwear was off and Mia reached shyly down to touch him. He guided her and let out a groan of pleasure, his breathing deepening and quickening like he had run ten miles. He put his hand to her opening, fighting back against her attack with full participation. She jerked from surprise, but soon relaxed, and before he knew it, they were both ready.

"It's going to hurt."

"Just do it."

She squeaked with shock, and her nails dug into his back where her hands were situated. He lingered there for a moment, allowing her to get used to the feeling, and began to move.

"Hidan," she breathed.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine…You?"

"Mia," he muttered, moving harder, throwing his head back.

He didn't mind now that he had to make sure she was okay. Once he knew she wasn't in pain anymore, he found it difficult to resist his impulses. He thrust more and began to move their position so she was sat on top of him, staring coyly down with a tearful, red face. She bent down and buried her face next to his behind his shoulder so that he could move from underneath. He understood that she didn't want to take control- well, that was fine by him.

More and more and more, and then she wrapped tightly around him and moaned with pleasure, and he knew she was finding her release. Being frustrated that he was second only quickened his response and before he knew it he was seeing stars, white and gold stars and gripping her body as tightly as he could, swearing at the strong response.

He rolled them both over until they were facing each other, lying on their sides.

It was pitch black outside now.

"Hidan, I…" she whispered. "I didn't know you could be like this."

"I didn't know you could be so mature about things," he replied, breathless.

"Same to you."

"Looks like we were more grown-up than we thought."

"Maybe. I… I wasn't bad, was I?" She blushed adorably.

"Hell no. You'll get better, but it was perfect for me."

"Sure?"

"Sure."

A knock on the door gave them both a heart attack.

"Excuse me? Hidan? Mia?"

Hidan swore and pulled on his underwear and trousers. "What do you want, Keigo?"

"Nothing I… I only wondered whether you wanted dinner at the elders' house. They want to meet you, so I thought I'd go and ask."

"Come on," Mia urged. "We'd better go. But maybe tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," Hidan called out.

"Sure, okay."

The two of them smirked at each other, and spent the rest of the night curled up on the floor. Hidan grinned victoriously, but his heart was filled with a different feeling, and he wasn't too sure what it was. It was warm, gentle, and unlike anything he'd felt before. He stared down at the little female curled around his body, and internally thought…

_This feeling, that I have for her… Is that what you'd call love?_


	11. Chapter 11- Knowing too much

Hey guys! SO sorry for the long gap between updates. Life has been completely hectic-been working a lot and it sucks all my inspiration away, haha. Now, this chapter just covers their introduction to Mr Elder, who seems to know a thing or two about the village's latest arrivals... hmmm...

Anyway, enjoy guys! Mild Mia X Hidan this chapter this time... ;) Enjoy and review.

**Chapter 11- Knowing too much**

Mia swallowed nervously. They were stood outside the elders' house, waiting for Keigo to give them the go-ahead to enter. He was taking an annoyingly long time. _Out gathering firewood, my ass, _Mia thought. However, she found it impossible to be truly angry with her hand wrapped securely in Hidan's.

Since the previous night- which still made her squirm each time he asked her about it- she felt a hundred times more attached to him. It seemed fine by Hidan, who enjoyed the contact. A very tactile person, he always held her hand.

"What if they're horrible people?" Mia asked, trying to sound casual.

"So what? If you want to live here, then you want to live here. Seriously, if you speak for us, they'll want us to stay here."

"Because I'm more tactful?" She smirked.

"Yeah." He scratched his head, and yawned. "I still don't get why you want us to live in such a boring place."

He would never accept that she wanted him to live a normal life, if she told him. Hidan probably hated being pitied, and he definitely didn't like being helped. She eyed the almost healed stiches all over his body and nodded in affirmation.

"It's a secret," Mia grinned.

He sighed and leaned towards her face, taking it in his free hand. "I don't like secrets," he said in a low voice.

"I won't tell…"

"Bad idea…"

Hidan pressed his lips to hers, and he snaked his hands around her waist, pulling her against his body. When their lips moved, Mia giggled internally- now she knew how to manipulate him.  
His lips once again found their way to her neck, and then to the top of her breasts, dashing and leaving her scorching skin behind. She ran a finger through his hair and paused before tugging.

He rose up, weakened, and ran a hand through her own locks. He drew back, holding her face. "Later, Mia," he said.

"You started it!"

"No, it was you, only you can do that to me with a word or two."

She laughed proudly, and held his waist. He put an arm around her shoulders. She glanced to the left, and saw Keigo hurrying towards them, clutching a large pile of wood.

"Sorry!" he said breathlessly. "It took longer than expected. Shall we go in?"

The house was small, and smelled strongly of scent sticks, lavender and different herbs mixed together in a powerful aroma. Dingy but not oppressive, there was a homely feel that had Mia feeling both lonely and optimistic.

"Mia? You're drifting off," Keigo said lightly. He went to nudge her, but Hidan shot him a possessive glare and she edged closer. Keigo shrugged and called out, "Mr Hayashikan, the new people are here."

Hayashikan?

The man who emerged from the back room into the front area was quite old, but not old enough to look like an elder. Nevertheless, it was him, and he smiled through a couple of wrinkles at Mia and Hidan, who stared dubiously.

"Welcome to the village, Hidan and Mia," the man said. "I am Yuumaru Hayashikan, the elder."

Mia interrupted, "How? I thought all the Hayashikans were buried in the ground except me!" She slammed a hand to her mouth. "Woops. Sorry. Forget I said anything."

"It's alright, child, I know your heritage. I can tell. We'll get to mine another time. And you," he said, looking at a scowling Hidan. "You've had our chakra assimilated into your system. If I am guessing correctly, you are a Jashinist, yes?"

Hidan shrugged. "You could say that."

"I do hope you won't kill any of my villagers for this ritual of yours."

"He won't," Mia assured him. "I will make sure of it." She grinned wickedly.

"You seem like you have quite a history in your lives, you two. You've been hurt greatly, and many times, you've hurt each other, you have hurt others, and you most certainly are not saints…" The two of them stared. Hidan almost snorted. "But I see no harm in allowing you to stay. However, you must not kill any more, and you must not disturb the lives of the villagers in any way. I'm giving you a chance here, and you won't get a better one."

"Okay, me and Hidan won't do anything rash, trust me."

"Awesome! Let's go away, then," Keigo finally spoke. He began to usher the two out of the house, with Mia flailing about, trying to get a word in edgeways amongst Hidan's protests and Keigo's words.

"Let me talk to you, Mr Hayashikan!" she cried. "I want to know more about us!"

But he did not listen. He merely stalked into the back of his house again, leaving them to exit reluctantly with an eager Keigo.

It was too simple a conversation. That was what she thought, anyway. No normal elder (hell, he wasn't even a properly old elder) would have inklings that strong about two strangers, and then allow those two murderers to set up residence in his own village. He was either barking mad, or scheming something. Mia knew in her heart that it was the latter, but dearly hoped that it was with good intentions, not sinister ones. Mr Hayashikan had to be from the same place she was from- wherever that was- and he had to know about what happened the day it was sacked and the chakra stolen… and given to Hidan. He must have been there.

Later on, when the sun was setting, Hidan and Mia were sat behind their house, leaning against a tree like so many of their days before. Outside was better; Mia felt much more at home under a tree than in a house. It was something about feeling free.

"Hey, Mia," Hidan said loudly. "You keep drifting off into space. Want to tell me what's bothering you?"

"Nnn…"

"Ah, come on."

She smiled and laughed. "It's nothing! Honestly, Hidan. I can't keep my thoughts to myself for a while?"

He slithered an arm around her waist, forcing her to lean against him from the side, resting her head on his shoulder.

"It was the meeting with Mr Hayashikan, wasn't it? It's pretty obvious from the look on your face."

"You know, you're getting more and more caring!" she said, changing the subject.

He snorted. "I am? That's surprising."

"Maybe to you…"

"Who knows? Maybe this is what I acted like… before the shinobi system fucked my head up."

"What exactly happened in your home village? What's the real story behind why you left?"

He pressed a finger to her lips, silencing her. No more was said, because then she realised that he was frowning. She'd touched a nerve again, by accident. Feeling guilty, she planted a comforting kiss on his rough cheek. He sighed and closed his eyes, and suddenly they were lying down, him on top of her, kissing her lips.

"Stop trying to distract me…" she gasped in between kisses.

"Nope."


End file.
